Phelan and Atkin Family History

The Cowan brothers: Charles standing, Ken seated at right (with younger brother Arthur seated at left) One of the interesting parts of my journey in family history research has been discovering the many men in our family who served in the Great War. Dad in fact had uncles on the Phelan side who served that he himself didn't recall. But there were another two who were definitely remembered: Ken and Charles Cowan were the two eldest sons of Joseph Charles Martin Cowan and Florence Davenport, and would also have been Dad's uncles were it not for the fact that both were killed in the horrific conflict. Ken and Charles were among the first men to sign up in support of the empire. On 11 August 1914, just one week after the declaration of war, the call went out for volunteers in Australia. Four days later, on 15 August, both boys showed up to heed that call, Ken enlisting at Melbourne and Charles at Moonee Ponds. Harry Kennett (Ken) Cowan was 20 years old, had been working as a grocer...

In the centre foreground is believed to lie Raymond William Phelan (Springvale Cemetery) Raymond William Phelan was the only son of William Thomas Phelan, a prominent identity for many years in the Victorian Railways, and older brother of my great-grandfather Joseph. During my original research on the Phelans, I discovered through available BDM records that William and his wife Caroline had four children: the first, Irene, was born in Seymour (1889), while the next three, Raymond (1891), Kathleen (1892), and Caroline (1899) were all born in Ascot Vale. It was also straightforward enough to find that Irene had died unmarried in 1966, Kathleen the same at the young age of 20 in 1912, while Caroline married a John Tobin (they had one daughter Patricia) and lived until 1971. Raymond however had me stumped. The only obvious record in the death index of a Raymond Phelan was from 1951, but the information provided stated his age at 70 (ten years too old) with parents named Robert and...

Roadside sign in Allans Flat, near Yackandandah, showing a photo of the Honour Boards (listing the three Brownes who served) from the Allans Flat School, now housed in the Anglican Church. Three of the nine sons (and eleven children overall) of John Browne and Mary Browne (nee Phelan) saw action in the Great War with. One would pay the ultimate price, one would be severely wounded, and sickness would prevent the other from seeing any action. Percy and William were born in Melbourne, Phillip in Beechworth. All three boys were students at the  Allans   Flat   School  (near Yackandandah) as the family resided in the area from the mid 1890s through to the untimely death of their mother in 1910. Their father John worked in the mining industry as a sluicer at that time, in the area where the waterhole stands today. By the time the boys enlisted in the AIF, the family had spread out with Percy and Phillip residing in Footscray with their father John who had...

In an earlier post I told the story of my grandfather Stan Phelan's experience in World War One, as well as that of his brothers Cecil and Gerald. Also serving was one of their uncles, Edward Phillip Phelan (known as Phillip). Phillip was the youngest of Jeremiah and Mary Phelan's ten children, born in Macedon in 1878 (his parents being about 57 and 45 respectively).  Little is known of Phillip's early years, though he is mentioned twice in the Woodend Star in July 1902. First he was appointed joint secretary of the newly-formed Macedon Football Club, then a week or so later he was one of several to provide entertainment at a function to honour the town's departing police constable - singing no less than five songs (as a side note, many of Phillip's siblings featured in the social pages at that time: John and James served as MC at all manner of social events, Frank occasionally sang, while Agnes was very active in the Macedon Dramatic Club). V ery soon however, Ph...

As a youngster I was told that my grandfather, Phillip Stanley Phelan, had been a Prisoner of War in the First World War but that was about the extent of the story. I never knew my grandfather, and chances are that even if I had, I might not have got many details from him, as plenty of men who lived through that horrific experience didn't like to talk about it. Even when my interest in genealogy began I didn't have a huge interest in the war. However once I got looking at the records, I wanted to make sense of them and began to delve deeper into the stories. While Stan is my only direct ancestor to have served in the conflict, he was one of three sons of Joseph Phelan who enlisted, one of whom would pay the ultimate price. I also discovered many more relatives on Dad's side of the family who took part. One day I may write something more comprehensive about the experiences of all my relatives who served - there were many on Mum's side as well - but for now my post will ...

My Grandpa Phillip Stanley Phelan was no longer around by the time I was born, but one thing I was occasionally reminded of by Mum was that he had been a prisoner of war in World War One. Strangely enough, given Stanley was Dad's dad, it was never Dad who mentioned it, always Mum. Dad didn't talk about the past, and I presume his father, like many men of his generation, would not have talked about it either. Fortunately through the National Archives of Australia, the record of every Australian who served in the Great War is freely available, so we can get some idea of what Stan's period of service looked like. Phillip Stanley Phelan was 23 years and 6 months old when he listed in the AIF on 22 February 1916. He was living with his parents at 55 Railway Place in Flemington, and was a clerk in the Transportation branch of the Victorian Railways. His medical examination reveals him to be 5'7 and 3/4", 139 pounds, with 'fresh' complexion, blue eyes and brown ...